Tuesday, January 29, 2013

So this is what I've been dealing with the last couple of days. Yeah, that's a big empty hole where the back window of my car should be. And, in case you weren't already aware, don't try backing out of the garage with the rear gate up. It doesn't work well.

Friday, January 25, 2013

This is a super easy project. I started with knee high socks from the dollar store ($1 per pair).

Chop the foot off, run a zig zag stitch across the raw edge, and done!

If you stretch the fabric as you sew, you'll get this lovely little ruffled edge (or technically, a lettuce stitch, I think).

This project comes via Calicoand you can see more details plus in progress photos on her blog. Oh, and she has pics of an adorable little baby wearing her diy leg warmers if you want to see what they look like on.

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

At the thrift store, this dress went into my cart, out of my cart, into my cart, out of my cart. And finally into my cart one last time. I knew I had an idea for this school marm-ish dress but whether or not I could actually get it to look like my vision was anything but certain. Luckily it turned out pretty much how I had hoped.

Here's what I did:

1. Detached the skirt from the bodice by unpicking the stitches

2. Took some length off of the botom of the skirt and added it to the waist to bring the waist down to my natural waist (it was kind of empire to begin with).

3. Added a few darts to the front for a fitted look

4. Reattached the skirt to the bodice, adding a few extra gathers as I went to adjust for the new, smaller waist.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

If you're trying to encourage environmental-friendliness, re-usable cups are probably ideal. But in the interest of convenience, these little coffee sleeves are easy to tuck in to a tote, pocket, or purse. And at least you're saving the disposable paper sleeves. (And they're way more fun than the paper sleeves!!)

I used this basic tutorialto make my sleeves. The trick is to use a smaller hook for the chain row (and I did my first row with the smaller hook as well), then switch to a larger hook for the remainder. This will give you a narrower bottom edge, just like a cup. You can pretty much use this idea for any crochet stitch or pattern. I also added a little cross stitch embellishment to a few.

Note: Depending on the type of yarn that you are using (I was just using scrappy bits), you may have to adjust the size hook and beginning chain number.

Total Spent: Zero dollars

(But if you have a bigger budget, it would be fun to tuck a Starbucks gift card in with these)

Monday, January 14, 2013

I'm kind of excited about these finds! The cherry bowl is Fire King and the covered sunflower casserole is Pyrex. They're both in awesome condition, especially the casserole which looks like it's never been used.

Friday, January 11, 2013

The basic idea: "Tell us what titles or genres you’ve enjoyed in the past, and we’ll give you surprisingly insightful recommendations". You can also create "shelves" of books you've read, want to read, favorites, etc., explore book lists (check out this great list of Best Books of 2012), connect with friends, and more. Between this site and Paperback Swap , I think I have 9 new books coming in the mail!

Thursday, January 10, 2013

I know I've been kind of MIA around here lately (My last post was Dec. 18 - really??). I can offer up a whole host of excuses: holiday craziness, kids home from school, switching computers (learning new technology is always so fun!) . . . But if I'm being honest, it was just a case of the 'unmotivateds". Just in a bit of a funk. The creative juices weren't flowin'. Does that ever happen to you? Well, hopefully that little episode is over and we can all get back to normal.

So to start the new year off, here's a round-up of some beautiful, super creative, FREE printable 2013 calendars: